Should You Start A Blog In A Crowded Niche In 2016?

by Janko Glavonjić ·
Published September 12, 2016
· Updated September 12, 2016

Starting a blog in a crowded niche in 2016 is certainly a tricky business and most of the people will simply tell you – don’t do it. There are numerous reasons why – insane competition, resources and time requirements, etc. Even with a good strategy and knowledge, you may end up wasting your time writing content nobody will ever read. But, despite all of that, I won’t tell you not to do it.

However, you must accept that blogging in a crowded niche is a risky move. If it’s just a hobby of yours, by all means do it, but if you plan to build authority and get those elusive high Google rankings, be prepared for the unfavorable outcome. Thousands of hours and dollars spent might not be enough. But if you’re still hell-bent on it, here’s a checklist of things you should do. The most important requirement for success is to stand out somehow.

Stand out in your crowded niche

If we were to talk about million dollar questions, this would certainly be one of them. How do you stand out? The best way to get some general ideas is to take a look at your competition. What do all people successful in that field have in common?

The most obvious trait is quality. You simply have to offer at least as much as they do, if not more, to your audience. There are also strategies you should think about, such as link building and guest blogging. These help you get exposure on pages relevant in any crowded niche. But, the most important thing is being unique. Maybe you accomplish this by adding something your competition doesn’t have – for example, a podcast to accompany your posts. Branch out to other platforms and formats.

If you’re competing with websites that have a different writer on every article, make it your strength that you’re there every week, and give your posts more of your personality. I’m sure by now you have a million ideas that take your specific strengths into consideration.

Keep in mind, though, that it’s rare for someone to start from the rock bottom, with no resources, and reach the sky. If you’re low on resources too, the eventual success for you is even more uncertain. Try finding a different approach to the most popular themes in the niche, which is the best way to stand out content-wise.

Heavy content marketing

Standing out in a crowded niche with your great content is only the beginning. Thousands of people created quality content in crowded niches in the past several years yet failed to establish themselves near the top. In most cases you will get little or no traffic, become disillusioned and leave the project.

We all know the success stories, but how many people tried and failed tens of times that nobody’s ever heard of? Many people fail to promote their content properly, which results in ultimately losing interest and leaving the project. If you are an individual without much money and little or no exposure prior to launching of the blog, you must first make connections.

You will do that by guest blogging, commenting, reaching out to people who are interested in same topics as you, etc. Of course, this is a long, slow road to walk that rarely gives immediate results. So, take a shortcut instead, and promote your blog through Facebook ads, right?

Wrong! If you start Facebook marketing in a crowded niche without previously making your name you may end up wasting money and time without any result. I am not saying that you shouldn’t promote your content on Facebook. Only when you generate some following should you try expanding it through Facebook marketing.

Getting to the top in a crowded niche

Let’s presume that you started a blog in a crowded niche. After that, you successfully published several guest posts on big blogs. Those blogs gave you links, exposure and you are now moderately known and respected author in the niche. You got some regular fans and readers through your guest blogging and you started some small Facebook campaigns. They went better than expected and your page has tens of thousands of likes. I must say this is very hard to do from scratch, but with some luck it’s possible.

However, it still doesn’t mean you will make a living from your blog. There are tens, maybe even hundreds of websites in the same niche which are still bigger than you and they get 99% of the money and fame. To make another huge leap, which is even harder than getting here from the scratch, you need something extra.

I already touched on this topic when I discussed standing out. You must observe the websites that top Google rankings in your niche and single out what makes them the best. But even more important is to find their weaknesses and things you can already do better than them. Even the tiniest details, such as the design of the call-to-action button may affect the popularity of the website. Be detail-oriented and turn everything you find to your favor.

Starting a blog in a crowded niche is a high risk job, which may leave you without a reward. You need to be lucky too. But, it can be done successfully. The question you have to answer is – will it be worth it? Good luck!

1 Response

I believe there are not (as many) crowded niches, if there is a niche with too many blogs and other websites covering it there is certainly high demand behind that fact. And the abundance of content in a niche should be a call for improvement through breaking down the niche and defining a deeper specialization. For example: you see there is a lot of dog related websites, ok, you write about a certain breed, e.g. golden retrievers, then you realize there is a lot of golden retriever themed websites, but you move onto writing about only feeding aspect… The broader the niche, the more specialization need to be done.